Throughout the casino various trainers were sleuthing and snooping around as they attempted to investigate the mysterious rumors about shady dealings behind the proverbial curtain. However, aside from run-down slot machines, eerie animatronic puppets, and the suspicious guards, things were relatively quiet on all fronts. Things were in fact too quiet, and a shadowy figure descended upon the building in order to get to the bottom of it.

Upstairs: CyberBlastoise, EpicSquirtle, Gemini Spark, Missingno. Master, morningstar, WhimsyUp on the highest level of the casino, a few trainers poked their heads around, trying to check things out. A small breeze blew throughout the area as if a window had been opened. In fact, one of the skylight windows was slightly ajar as a mysterious figure had slipped in and darted down the staircase. A lone Murkrow glided in afterward, silently dropping a feather onto each of the trainers before flying back out the window. Attached to each feather was a card that read, “Meet at the bottom of the downstairs stairwell in 10 minutes. It’s time to clean house.”

~~~~~~~

A few minutes later, several of the trainers had made their way down the staircase while a few stepped out of the elevator. They congregated and murmured quietly amongst themselves, wondering who or what had summoned them here. Suddenly the lights dimmed and a hooded figure Teleported in front of the crowd with a Natu on their shoulder. Pulling the green hood off of his head, the figure revealed himself to be a young man in his late 20’s with a thin mask across his eyes.

“Glad you all could make it,” he spoke in a low voice as he addressed the group. “We don’t have a lot of time before they catch on, so I’ll be brief. “The one who leaked the info to the media about the shady business behind the casino was none other than myself. You don’t need to know my name but you can refer to me as the Jack of Hearts. Just know that like you I want to put a stop to this casino and return the goods and Pokemon they smuggled back to the community. Follow me.”

The Jack of Hearts quickly turned and walked down the corridor at a brisk pace. He arrived at a door and allowed for the trainers to catch up. “Rotom, if you will.” The Rotom that had previously commandeered the elevator phased through the wall and came face to face with the electronic panel that locked the door. Rotom integrated with the machinery and after a moment, the door was open. “Quick, grab what you can, but make sure there’s enough for everyone.”

What lay before them was in fact the casino’s treasure vault. The room was filled with shelves covered with various valuable items and the walls were stacked with unhatched eggs. “They’ve caught wind of our plans and already begun to move some of their goods out of here, but let’s clean them out and take the rest.”

The Natu on the Jack of Hearts’ shoulder’s eyes suddenly glowed blue as if it was getting a vision of the future. It let out a low chirp. “We have to move quickly. The guards will be down here any minute. I’ll set off a diversion while you all escape, so hurry!” He quickly nodded to his Natu, who Teleported away. A faint explosion was heard moments later as his Scraggy had presumably set off a number of explosives in the bathrooms upstairs. Once the trainers had loaded up on goods, it was time to leave. The trainers hurried back down the hallway as a pair of Granbull with guards’ hats stepped out of the elevator. They growled menacingly.

“Go up the stairs and get out of here quickly! We’ll hold them off!” The Jack of Hearts pulled out a Pokeball and tossed it, revealing a Decidueye. “Freeze them, Robin Hoot!” The owl nodded and held up his wing like a bow and arrow, firing off a pair of feathers at the Granbull. The feathers missed the Granbulls and landed harmlessly on the ground behind them. The two Granbulls laughed and began to step forward only to find their paws frozen in place. Robin Hoot’s Spirit Shackle had done its job, pinning their shadows in place.

~~~~~~~

As the trainers quickly ascended the stairs and exited the building with the crowd of tourists who were visiting the casino. The fire alarm had been triggered, causing a mandatory evacuation to call for everyone to leave the building, staff included. The pair of Granbulls were last to leave the building, scratching their heads in confusion with a defeated expression on their faces. It was tough to spot with the untrained eye, but a shadowy figure emerged on the roof of the building and glided away with the wings of an owl carrying him.

At this point, the Fizzytopian fire department and police department had arrived at the scene and cordoned off the area. One of the police members announced that there was a bomb threat and the police force began questioning people, starting with the casino’s staff. Suddenly, without warning, a loud explosion erupted from inside the building and the roof caved in. Like a volcano, a cloud of dollar bills spewed out of the casino and into the air. A frenzy erupted throughout the crowd as people scrambled to collect the money as it floated back down to earth.

“Hey, this money’s counterfeit!” one of the officers exclaimed while another slapped the giant pile of money out of his hands. “You heard the man, book ‘em!” The second officer exclaimed as they turned to arrest the casino’s staff. As confusion and chaos swirled in the air while the foundation of the building slowly began to crumble, it would be in the trainers’ who knew the secret behind the casino’s demise best interest to flee the premises before it was their turn to be questioned. As the firefighters began to put out the fires and smoke billowed into the sky, a dark chapter in the history of Fizzytopia’s history had finally been closed… for now.

It is unfortunate we couldn’t deliver on more of an event, but as promised it is time to cash in on the closure of the Cinccino Royale. For those of you who participated in the event, please feel free to claim the following items. This thread will remain open until January 1st, 2018.

• One Rare Casino EggDisclaimer: Casino Eggs will be hatched in THIS THREAD on January 1st, 2018 for all who claim them. Please do not overrun the Hatchery with egg vouchers!

Keith and Ginny made their way towards the west corridor, when suddenly, a small breeze blew around. Keith glanced around- he wasn't aware that a window had been opened? Nevertheless, as he glanced up, he realized that a skylight window was indeed ajar, and a single, silent Murkrow was stealthily soaring around, dropping feathers around. Including one that fell straight down to Keith. Ginny eyed the Murkrow warily as Keith read the card attached to the feather. "Ginny," Keith whispered, catching his Pawniard's attention before showing her the card.

Ginny wasn't sure about this. This seemed so much like a trap of some sort... then again, she reasoned, was there any other way for them to get to the bottom of all this? "...Pawn," she whispered back to Keith with a brief nod. They'd go, whether it was a trap or not. If not, then of course that was just fine. But if it was a trap, Ginny was prepared to fight.

And soon, Keith and his Pawniard made their way to the bottom of the staircase. As did, he noted, virtually everyone else who had been gathered, and what a crowd there was! A number of faces Keith recognized, and a number of ones he didn't. It was clear that Keith was not the only one summoned here. This seemed to put Ginny at ease, at least somewhat- if this many people were all being lured into a trap at once, sheer numbers might give them the edge in fighting their way out.

And then the lights dimmed. A hooded figure appeared before them, literally out of nowhere. Keith's initial shock was slightly diminished by the sight of the man's Natu- he'd used his Qwilfish for Teleport enough times to know what that Natu's role had been just now. The man took down his hood, revealing a thin mask across his eyes, and whispered to the group, revealing himself to have been the one to leak to the media all the shady business going on behind the scenes at the casino, calling himself simply the Jack of Hearts. Stating that he wanted the same thing as all of them, and that they had very little in the way of time, he asked the group to follow him.

And follow him they did. The Jack of Hearts led them to a door. Locked, of course, but the man's Rotom was close by, and able to overcome the electronic lock. And as the door fell open, so too did Keith's mouth- this was clearly the casino's treasure vault, packed with all manner of valuable items, up to and including a plethora of unhatched Eggs. The Jack's only advice for them at this point was to grab what they could, be quick about it, and ensure there was enough for everybody.

And Keith did not need telling twice on any of those counts! He must have been the first one inside, Ginny being a close second. "You heard him, Ginny," said Keith, already scooping up a nearby Cherish Ball. "Let's go for it!"

"Pawniard!" Ginny responded, making her way to a stack of Technical Machines and grabbing several at random while Keith plunged his arm into a barrel of Heart Scales (even if he only came out of it clutching one), and subsequently grabbing an Egg at random. And then, he came to a shelf piled high with an impressive array of evolution stones. And at the very top, a pitch-black rock that reflected the light beautifully. Having evolved both a Nidorino and a Nidorina in the past, Keith knew a Moon Stone when he saw one, and considering the stone's rarity, plus the use Keith would have for such a stone, considering a certain Psychic-type he'd adopted recently, he also knew that with an opportunity such as this, he'd be stupid not to grab the Moon Stone.

Keith and Ginny met back up within a minute or two, Ginny handing the TMs off to Keith. Four of them- Pay Day, Snatch, Thief, and Psychic. And thankfully, the Pawniard was able to avoid activating any of them by accident. Keith stowed away the loot in his backpack, but before he could even consider possibly grabbing more stuff, the Jack of Hearts spoke up- the guards were on their way! He promised to distract them, and as Natu Teleported away, he seemed to make quite good on his promise, for there was a distant explosion not a moment later. Keith and Ginny exchanged looks. "Yeah, let's get the hell outta here," Keith said.

"Pawn!" Ginny nodded, and so they took off along with the others. But they didn't get very far before their way forward was blocked- a pair of purple Pokémon wearing guards' hats stepped out of the elevator, growling menacingly. Keith no longer cared about acting inconspicuous- it was clear that that ship had sailed, hit an iceberg, sank, and had a movie made about it. Therefore he whipped out his Pokédex and pointed it at the newcomers.

"Granbull, the Fairy Pokémon," droned the device. "A Fairy-type, and the evolved form of Snubbull. Despite its appearance, Granbull is timid by nature. When enraged, however, it attacks with powerful bites from its enormous fangs."

"OK, they're Fairy types," Keith murmured- if they had to fight their way past a pair of Granbull, he was very, very thankful that the Pokémon accompanying him was a Steel type. He looked to Ginny and opened his mouth with the intention of telling her to use Iron Head, but the Jack of Hearts spoke up first, promising to hold the Granbull off while the others fled up the stairs. With that, he sent out a Decidueye. Keith grinned as Decidueye shot a pair of feathers straight past the Granbull- he'd been on the business end of a Spirit Shackle once before himself, and even before the Granbull themselves knew it, Keith knew they were trapped. Taking this as his cue, Keith dashed up the stairs, Ginny following not far behind.

At long last, they were out of the building! As were the tourists who'd actually come to gamble- the fire alarm had gone off. Despite the situation, Keith couldn't help but smile- the casino might be shady as all hell, but at least they didn't disregard basic fire safety. Something Keith knew more than a little about, considering his father worked for the Lavaridge Fire Department back home. Everyone evacuated, up to and including the staff. Unseen by Keith or Ginny, a shadowy figure was flown off the roof by a certain owl.

And then came the local fire department, as well as the police department- apparently there was a bomb threat. And just as the police started to question the casino staff, there was another explosion. The casino's roof caved in, and-

Keith's jaw dropped. What happened next made him seriously wonder if this was what happened if you powered up Pay Day into a Z-Move- Pokédollars were erupting from the building like some sort of cash volcano. Keith frantically scrambled to grab some of the dough, but very quickly lost interest as one cop's cry of "Hey, this money's counterfeit!" echoed across the crowd.

"Alright, Ginny, we should get the hell outta here," Keith whispered. "We'll see about getting the Egg hatched when we can-"

"Pawn," Ginny interrupted. She was glaring at something, and Keith could very plainly see what once he followed the Pawniard's gaze. A Granbull, whether one of the guards from before, or an additional guard they'd not encountered before, was glaring right back. Keith couldn't tell- all he knew was that that look that the Granbull was giving was not a good one. Clearly, the Fairy type was more than a little displeased that the casino had been destroyed. And so Keith made to casually walk away, something that the other Trainers present seemed quite interested in doing, but the Granbull followed Keith, steadily walking faster, which in turn prompted Keith to pick up the pace, until they were both flat-out running.

"Gah!" Keith grunted, nearly tripping on a tree root as he tried to outrun the Granbull. "Alright, fine! Ginny, if that thing wants a fight, we'll give it a fight! Iron Head, let's go!"

"Pawn pawn!" Ginny exclaimed, charging forwards... only to be met with a point-blank Flamethrower from the Granbull!

Keith swore in Shuppet language as Ginny stood unsteadily before Granbull, the Flamethrower having burned her in addition to scoring a critical hit. The Granbull, however, wasn't finished, and gave a bellowing Roar, forcing Ginny right back into her Red Cyber Ball.

"Oh, geez," Keith groaned as the Granbull advanced on him. WHY hadn't he brought any of his other Pokémon?! He was prepared to try and flee again as Granbull started to prepare a Wild Charge... and then an Ice Beam struck Granbull's rear paws, freezing them to the ground! Keith's jaw dropped as a pink creature with a floral pattern floated down, hovering between him and Granbull. "Selia?!" Keith exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"

Saving you, of course, the Munna responded telepathically. Luna suggested I come and see if I can help. Which I knew to mean you would definitely need my help.

"Well, I'm loving your timing here," Keith stated. "Selia, Psywave!"

"Muuu NAAAAA!" responded Selia, unleashing the rings of Psychic energy right at Granbull. This blasted it backwards, freeing its paws from the ice, but also dealt some nice damage. Granbull, unfortunately, was quick to fight back, hurling a Shadow Ball at Selia in retaliation.

"Quick, Selia, dodge that!" Keith called, but he was rather late in doing so- the Munna was grazed by the super effective move and sent tumbling to the ground. "Gah... Selia... Why didn't Luna come herself?" he asked desperately.

I asked her that myself, came the Munna's voice in Keith's mind. She said I would find out just after you did. As she spoke telepathically, the Munna unsteadily rose back into the air.

"Just after I-" Keith spluttered, confused. What was that Swoobat of his even thinking?! There was always some sort of method to her madness, but he couldn't for the life of him see what it was this time. "What the- Didn't she give you a hint or something?" he asked desperately.

She said I was the hint.

"But how the- wait a sec," Keith murmured as something clicked in his mind. He dug into his backpack and sifted through his recent haul, pulling out his new Moon Stone. "Of course!" Keith grinned. "Selia, catch!" And he tossed the Moon Stone right at his Munna. And what happened next surprised precisely no one, though the Granbull did stop charging up a Flamethrower as Selia started glowing. Her overall shape remained the same, though as the glowing faded, there was now a trailing cloud of pink Dream Mist emerging from the hole in the 's forehead. Keith pointed his Pokédex at Selia with a grin on his face.

"Musharna, the Drowsing Pokémon. A Psychic-type, and the evolved form of Munna. With the mist from its forehead, Musharna can create shapes of things from dreams it has eaten. The Dream Mist emanating from its forehead is packed with the dreams it has eaten."
Ah, so this is what Luna meant, came Selia's voice in Keith's mind. A little more mature-sounding than when she was a Munna, but still recognizable. Now then, I think it's time I try something new out, she added, before rotating in midair, pointing her forehead to the ground. She unleashed a puff of odd purple energy which struck the ground and spread. Keith, at a loss for words, consulted his Pokédex once more.

"Psychic Terrain," said the device. "An attack that alters the battlefield with weird energy temporarily. It powers up Psychic attacks and prevents the use of attacks that are guaranteed the first strike."

"Powers up Psychic moves, hm?" Keith grinned, eyeing the list of Selia's moves. "Then let's try another new move, Selia!" he declared, for at that moment, Granbull had finally started to charge in for a Play Rough. "Use Psybeam!"

"Shaaarna!"responded Selia, firing the Psybeam as ordered, a rainbow-colored beam of psychic power that slammed into Granbull, bolstered by the Psychic Terrain- Granbull couldn't power through, and abandoned the attempt at Play Rough.

"Now! Hypnosis!" Keith ordered.

Selia floated up to Granbull. She hovered, level with the Fairy-type's face... and opened her eyes. Granbull gave an involuntary shudder, but was unable to look away, not until the powerful hypnotic suggestion forced its eyelids shut. Keith gave a sigh of relief as Granbull slumped to the ground, snoring.

I believe if we flee now, we can be far away by the time Granbull awakens, Selia suggested to Keith.

Keith nodded. "I'm all for that," he agreed. He turned around and led the way back home, clutching Ginny's Red Cyber Ball, with his newly-evolved Musharna following close behind.

OOC: Claiming the following;

*1 Heart Scale

*1 Cherish Ball, which I will not use to house anything just yet- gonna hold off on that decision.

*1 Moon Stone, which I promptly use on Selia the Munna to evolve her into a Musharna.